XCritic Interviews

XCritic Triple X Spotlight: Charlotte Sartre

"Acting, Girlsway and the Sartre of the Real World"

I think that when history looks back upon this era in adult entertainment, it will see two amazing things among many that we will focus on today. Girlsway.com and the amazing Charlotte Sartre. Both are true definitions of art in so many ways and both climbed the ladder to the top in a very respected manner. “GothCahrlotte” …. I was always fascinated by that handle and had wanted to meet her since she entered the business. Having the distinct reputation of being the beautiful performer who had done a lot of her own tattoos was enough to make me jump at any chance I could to find out who she was. It was in Denver that I met the mild-mannered sweetheart who was even more of a joy to speak to than I ever could have imagined. She was a lover of art, acting and creation. She was a woman whose deep thoughts were a part of her aura and shined like stars in the night sky when you look deep enough and at the right moment. Since that chilly April afternoon, I had been waiting to get the perfect occasion to interview this amazing woman and bring her to the fans in a way that no one ever has. She had just recently finished her second scene with Girlsway.com and she was cast in two roles that really brought out her acting ability. That and she was being paired with two of the best performers on the planet and I knew when I saw the marketing promos, the world was in for a surprise. Too many only see the ink that is upon her skin and do not bother to ask of the origin and story of her expression. In today’s world, the “inked” performer is showcasing that perhaps we all did not stop and smell the roses because the amount of people that have seen these two vignettes proves that this beauty and her fellow “inked” performers are something that none of us thought possible but a select few. So, without any more wait, let us meet Charlotte and see the world through the eyes of a performer reflecting on performance.

Don Juan DeMarko:OK, let us get all this craziness going here. You know, one of the things that I have always wanted to ask you since day one and once again, I love this because so many of the girls that I know are actors. I am kind of skipping a few questions here, but I would love to know, where did you get your passion for acting? Because I am going to tell you this darlin’, I have been doing this for a while now and you are a damn good actor…..

Charlotte Sartre: Thank you.

Don Juan DeMarko: You are welcome. I mean there are very few in this business that have the ability to transform into a character as you can. Who was it that influenced to do this type of art?

Charlotte Sartre: Well, if anyone, maybe watching the work of Daniel Day Lewis I guess. I have always wanted to be like him, but I guess for acting roles, I can just identify myself in each character and just relate to that person the best way that I can. I think that each character has at least one facet of your personality that anyone can relate to if they dig deep or study. It makes it to where you can match up with the character in other ways once you find that link, especially in porn. Well, because most of us are already sexually and emotionally good or connected at that part of the character. A lot of it Don is being myself as much as possible. I think it is so much easier to be myself than to have the character be one hundred percent fabricated. I think doing that makes a performer manufacture things when their own personality could do what is required for them to portray the rest of their character. That is one part of it. The other part of the equation is that I try and take the direction that is given for the character. There are times where I have gotten really frustrated and in order to make the scene be all that it can be, I learned to become a good listener.

Don Juan DeMarko:Darlin’ that is one of the best answers I have ever heard. Wow! The greatest artists in the world are those people who have that natural ability. This is so remarkable. This is one of the first times I get to interview a true performer because you have a hell of an ability to make your roles believable. You know this, I think fans do not always understand certain aspects of what goes into performing. It is…

Charlotte Sartre: They think it is all real.

Don Juan DeMarko:Yes, yes, they do. I think you know this as well, the bigger you get in this business the more trolls you must defend yourself from. I was talking to this guy today, where I had to explain to him, “this is entertainment” this is the not the end-all reality of what sex really is. He was beyond blown away by this discovery. I guess I have never understood that point of view you know?

Charlotte Sartre: It is ridiculous. You get so many people who take everything at face value and they take everything far too seriously. Or, when you are actually being genuine, they do not believe it, because they think that everything about you is fake. It sucks sometimes no doubt.

Don Juan DeMarko:You said it all right there darlin’. I seem to tell this story every interview and I remember when I use to do promo work for professional wrestling way back in the day. I was working with a very well-known performer and he was such a good actor he could piss off any crowd that there was, that is how good of a heel he was, or a bad guy if you will. One night, we went to a bar after a show and this was before he was a massive superstar. Every single guy in the bar wanted to come over, tell him how tough they were and try and kick his ass and antagonize him into a fight. He tells this guy, “hey man, I am not wrestling right now, all that shit you are entertained by is fake.” For me, my heart goes out to performers for this very reason. I do not mean it in a bad way because you all are very strong women. I can see why it does piss so many girls off when the same thing happens to them.

Charlotte Sartre: Oh my gosh, totally. It makes it very difficult for me to go to conventions. On camera, I appear that I am a little coy, but the truth is I am cripplingly shy in real life and if I am out somewhere, everybody, including other performers, they just want to touch my butt and it is hard to deal with. I have to say this a lot, “I am not working right now.”

Don Juan DeMarko:I dig that a lot because when I met one of my best friends in this business and I gave her this great big hug and truthfully, I was like wow! I am meeting the woman behind the alter ego, not the alter ego and she said the same thing to me. She said, “I am meeting the man behind Don Juan DeMarko, not Don Juan himself.” I really loved that because like you said, it is a business. This is work and it is really cool to meet someone else who understands that.

Charlotte Sartre: Thank you.

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Don Juan DeMarko: OK, here goes the “real questions.” I would love to know so that we can tell all the fans who are taking in everything Charlotte Sartre, how did you get your start in this glorious business.

Charlotte Sartre: You would be surprised how often that I get asked that question. So, I started webcamming in March 2015. I was about twenty years old and I just wanted to begin to dip my toe into things when it came to being naked on film and having my body all over the internet and my butthole out there until the end of time. (Charlotte’s sense of humor is amazing. It is dry and as beautiful as the sunrise. Here I got a mighty chuckle, yet it did not sway her telling this amazing story.)

Don Juan DeMarko:(Wheezing from trying to hide the laughter) I love it! You rock woman!

Charlotte Sartre: I had applied to some companies and nothing was sticking because I had no porn history other than webcamming. My pictures were not very good, and lot of people did not want to take a chance on someone who is brand new, which I totally understand. I randomly got hit up by some shitty agency out in Florida. Mind you, I lived in San Francisco at the time. I did not know how this company was doing business. At the time, I did not know the difference between a good agency and a bad agency. Let’s just say that this “agency” was very predatorial in many, many ways Don. So, I flew to Florida with all of these promises that I was going to have this company get me all this work. I had to spend some time in Florida because I had no money to get back and no money to pay the model house that I was staying at. I get onto the phone with my so-called agent and he tells me that I could find “other means” to pay my rent. So here I am, thinking there is no other way to get around this bullshit and this agent has the nerve to tell me, “we like girls who are with this agency and are not just in it for the money.” I then tell this guy, “isn’t that the point of having a job? Being in it for the money?” It was during this time where I felt I had to other choice in the industry that I got booked for Asylum out in New Jersey. That was August of 2015. So, I tell a producer from Asylum all the shit that is happening. The producer tells me that they are sorry I am experiencing all of this. I asked if anyone with the company knew a way that I could get around in the business without being represented by an agency. It was from there that they introduced me to the wonderful people at Kink. Everything worked out perfectly. Kink is in San Francisco, I am in San Francisco. So, I interviewed with them, they really liked me and if you are local, then we can shoot you all the time. I was literally shooting from them about five times a month. I did a few scenes, then I did a gang bang with Xander Corvus, who introduced me to Joanna Angel, that is how I shot for the first time with Burning Angel. It was from there that I used Twitter to DM directors and beg them to shoot me and it is basically what I have been doing ever since then. It has been far better than working with an agent and I think most of them are bad for this business.

Don Juan DeMarko: I love that you speak so boldly on this and this is something that needs to be told because this industry seems to only have the bad types of situations be it’s calling card and this story you just told, it is something that other performers need to hear. You are not “stepping on toes” as I have seen some people make the excuse for some of these shitty companies, you are speaking truths that need to be looked at in the business by those who can change things and ……

Charlotte Sartre: Yeah, because people get taken advantage of. I like this story I just told to be a cautionary tale.

Don Juan DeMarko:Yes, I am like you Charlotte, this is an industry I love but it is a job, it is a business. There are a lot of people who get into the business for exactly that. These are people who are hypersexual, who are very outgoing. It should be something good for them in every way when they jump into this business and see if they got what it takes to make a living working in this business. I have always respected that about you darlin’. Your honesty is something that I really admire.

Charlotte Sartre: Thank you so much, Don.

Don Juan DeMarko:OK, question number three as we get to the true basis of our visit her today. What was it like to finally shoot for Girlsway.com? For me, I am really glad that you finally got to work with Alan, honestly, I really am.

Charlotte Sartre: Oh God, I love Alan. He is so sweet, and he is very, very good at directing. He is one of my favorite directors. He deserves every award that he has ever received. I hope I get to work again with him very, very soon. He is good at communicating with the models. He is really funny, so, it kind of relaxes you when you are on set. Yeah, he is wonderful. Just genuinely a very, very nice person. I was super excited to finally be shooting for Girlsway. Especially since the moment I had gotten into porn, even though I did not have very many tattoos, there were so many people who told me no. So, I never thought that I would be able to shoot for a company like Girlsway. I thought they were too “mainstream” and I already do not do a lot of lesbian scenes, even though before I got into porn, most of the sexual experiences I had were with women. When I had first gotten into porn, I wanted to do lesbian only. I said to myself, “If Georgia Jones could do it, that would be the coolest thing, because I am obsessed with Georgia Jones. So many people told me that I would never make any money that way, you do not have to look for things in many different ways, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah and that I should just do Boy/Girl as well. So, I said fine. So that was very cool when I finally was booked. I also love how active the members of Girlsway are. They always give performers this really nice feedback. They really watch the scenes from start to finish and not just the sex part.

Don Juan DeMarko:You bring up such a great point. The Girlsway.com fans are something very special in this business. They are true fans in every sense of the word and I have told that to Alan many times. I think the thing that many production companies miss, is that the fan that pays for their porn, they are watching every second of a scene from start to finish. These fans, they watch the acting because a real fan understands that it is entertainment, it is fantasy. So, my second part of the question I am leading you into, how was being on Alan’s set so different from so many others? I have heard Alan’s set can be grueling and I mean that in a good way. I think a set like is what creates films that people want to pay to see.

Charlotte Sartre: Oh, definitely. Well, I have only shot for him a couple of times, both occasions were very long days, but the finished product justifies the time that you spend there. The time spent doing things like going over and over your lines. If there is a technical issue, it is corrected right then and there. It can be something like we were not getting the right angle on a performers leg, or ankle and the entire crew is simply so wonderful. Mo and Judith, just being around those two, they were so sweet. It really makes a difference Don, I can not express that enough. I would much rather spend thirteen hours in Alan’s set than on anyone else’s set and I have been on some very big sets.

Don Juan DeMarko: Amazing, this makes my next question so much more meaningful now. I love April O’Neil. I think one of the best awards was that amazing woman winning the GOTY award from Girlsway. Is getting paired in a scene with her nerve-wracking? What is she like as a scene partner? She seems like a wealth of knowledge and wisdom on a shoot like this. Me personally. I would have been shitting my pants just doing an acting scene with her.

Charlotte Sartre: It was really, really cool. She is so down to earth, I was excited to work with her. We had an instance where the scene got postponed so we had some time knowing that we were going to be shooting together. I thought for a minute that we might not even be able to shoot together. I was feeling very let down. I mean this is April O’Neil you know. Anyone would be so lucky to shoot with her. The good thing that came out of this time was that the anticipation kept on building and I was very nervous to meet her because I know she is such a powerhouse. She is so down to earth, and she is so sweet, we both began to talk about the production and we figured out that we had a very similar outfit and it was almost the same exact thing. We thought, “why not wear this type of attire?” It would fit the type of scene we were shooting a lot better and it would be fun. It was so great Don. Our scene, it was the second scene of the day and we had already been shooting dialogue for a feature that she was in. So we had spent a ton of time with other things so Alan was very lenient on the intro. We did not exactly stick to the script. So, we had to make the scene longer in order to compensate and we actually went over the set time that he had for the scene. She is so good at pacing and she would take me aside in between takes and asked me what I thought about doing this and she thought that we could go this way and do a little bit of this and flip me over and we will do this. It was just the perfect construction of a scene. It was incredible.

Don Juan DeMarko: (As she is saying this, I think of the scene, which is one of the best Girlsway.com scenes of 2018 and I am stuttering a tad as I try and think straight.) It, …it, really was. I used to always tell this to April over social media when critiquing her work about how great her shoes are and would always make me laugh my showing her dedication but being very down to earth about her amazing ways that show so much on film. The dresses that you both had on, that is the first thing that came to mind when I saw that scene and I was writing the review. I knew there was something more to this. Thank you for shedding light on it. You know, I can not lie. Growing up in New York, I use to room with some actors and I would see them go to class all the time and you begin to see this type of creation happen before your eyes. I find it just amazing you both put your heads together like you did.

Charlotte Sartre: Yeah, that was really cool. There were a few moments that were accidents, there were others that were planned and it became something that I am was very proud to be a part of. Like I said, it does not get any cooler than that.

Don Juan DeMarko:Oh, this brings me right back into the next things I wanted to ask about this other scene. I love that you read what your fans write and think about your work. That is not easy to stomach having someone go over the things that you have done. I know I could not do it, so I commend you for that. I really loved the dialogue for the Scarlett Sage scene. I would love to know since that scene was based off one of their member's stories. How much of that was improv? How much of it was off the script?

Charlotte Sartre: A lot of it was actually scripted, Don. We even had to trim the script down a lot because it was very long. I think very little of it was improvised but Alan actually chimed in a few places and he would say, “you know, maybe this would sound better if you said, this, …… or perhaps this.” I was so nervous, so we both had a bit of a hard time with the lines. I think that anyone will be able to tell that I was a little nervous. I learned that day that sometimes that nervousness is what can really work for a scene. It added something to the story and we felt it.

Don Juan DeMarko:Yes, oh I am telling you, I would have given you a review where I criticized bad acting if there was any or a struggle. The thing you brought out naturally and what I simply must say, the mistake every fucking person makes with a “Goth Girl” and I say that because some of my best friends in this business are Goth Girls. They are always misinterpreted that if you are a “Goth” person, that you are not formally happy and that you feel no love and do not care about the beautiful things that are love and compassion. The way that you showed your natural happiness in that scene, it was mind blowing I know some people were simply stunned beyond belief by that. That was so fucking cool!

Charlotte Sarte: That is so sweet, thank you. When I got the script I kind of rolled my eyes. In my mind, was the familiar, “Oh boy, here I am, typecast again.” Then, I was so blown away by the member's responses. Everyone on the Girlsway.come site had such amazing feedback. Of course, you have a couple of people who were saying things like, “too many touches.” I tried to perform in such a way that you were not seeing my tattoos or even thinking of them.

Don Juan DeMarko:You succeeded madam. On our boards and a few other companies, there are spots where the fans get to talk. The thing that surprised people so much, was that people could not believe that you were as passionate as you truly are. I would chime in sometimes on our board and I would say things like, “well you do know she is female correct?” Everyone’s reply, “Uh yeah!” To that, I finished with “So then how can a person be stupid enough to believe that this sweetheart of a woman who is very beautiful is not capable of being passionate?” Then I saw so many people say, “wow, I have been judging a book by its cover, haven’t I? This is why I really pushed for this time with you and your publicist. I love showing performers and their true sides that no one ever sees or takes the time to see. You are a very special person Charlotte Sartre and I do not mind preaching about that. You have such talent to play roles others cannot.

Charlotte Sartre:(She laughs in the softest, sweetest tone) I really appreciate that. I really do Don. I loved the scene with Scarlet because she is petite like me and I would have never expected that level of energy to come out of her the way that it did. Right when the camera starts rolling, she turns into a completely different person. It was great to work with her like that when she turned that switch on, it was cool.

Don Juan DeMarko:It's that discovery of what lies within the heart and spirit of another person. How their inner beauty and strength can surprise you. You are changing the way that people see performers in this business. I love it. It is going to be people like you, especially who lay a good groundwork for those who come after you. Now, I must ask this in closing, now that your roles are starting to get bigger and bigger, are you starting to really get a taste and catching the acting bug the more and more you get booked for these amazing roles or is the encounter and erotica still the driving force behind your career?

Charlotte Sartre: I think that I have worked with almost everybody that I have wanted to. Aside for a few people like Georgia Jones, she is still number one. We are planning something Don. I can not fill you in on everything yet but trust me. It will be worth the wait. I truly get so excited when I get a script Don. It is just too hard to describe what I feel now. There is something in my head that just wants to make what I am reading on the pages come to life. The reason this is my cup of tea, is that sometimes you do not always know how the sex is going to turn out. You must able to bounce your energy off of the other person. So, you may have this idea in your head of how you think things will unfold and you could be completely proven wrong and usually in a good way. The scripts are a cool thing. I love doing my best to memorize it and deliver it in a few different ways. It seems to be that when all this happens, I get to set and it all changes at the last moment.

Don Juan DeMarko:Fuck! I bet you are like, “damn it, I was prepped!”

Charlotte Sartre: Yes, oh, there are times, where I have a feeling that it will change, and I will skim through the read and not pay too much attention to my lines. So, I will get there and start learning my lines right before we shoot. I think that it can help me to deliver the lines more naturally, versus more robotic and rehearsed.

Don Juan DeMarko:Spoken like a true actor. I say this far too often but when someone gets paid to do all this, you truly start to see where the heart and soul of this business lay, and it is not in the flesh but within the mind. I have had times where I have been forced to review your work and ever time, I see it, you simply amaze me with how much the character changes and how fresh you make a scenario in this business go. I haven't seen a bad performance with you even when you have been in films where you can tell that only you were there to work. I think that sheep of the world are needed for moments like this. They do not see that you are surrounded by such idiots that you make the performance make up for their lack of effort. You are a performer that makes that real to fans and that is what will always make this business grand. Anything you wish would tell the fans closing?

Charlotte Sartre: Yes, I wanted to tell the fans thank you for the support. I do not have any Girlsway.com scenes in the making but that could change at any time. I wanted to tell the fans that I am working on a membership site. I already have my ManyVids and I simply do not like the platform. I think that the fans would be able to get something a lot better with something that I have created and that I am able to maximize many things in my career with. I am constantly always creating things for my membership site. I am going to be launching a ton of new things. I have some amazing shirts that are going to be revealed very soon. I have been getting so many people asking me where they can get a shirt of me, so I figured I need to get the fans what they desire.